[albuKat]

bump

[albuKat]

Bump... again.

Still haven't figured this out. Is failure of the speedo sensor possible without any damage to it?

[The CyberPoet]

If it's not the actual sensor, castle nut that triggers the sensor or the wires coming off it, the next most likely cause is the many-pin connectors above the headlight leading the wiring harness into the dash -- open the connectors up and look for signs of either burn-damages or corrosion.

As for whether it's possible for the sender to go bad without physical damages -- yes. There's a test in the factory manual for it using a screwdriver to trigger the hall sensor & checking the output signal.

Cheers,
=-= The CyberPoet

______________________
CyberPoet's KR Specials
Suzuki Stratosphere - 6 Cylinders, the new Katana?
The Best Motorcycle Metal Billet Tire Valves in the World, plus lots of motorcycle & Katana (GSX600F / GSX750F) specific help files.

[albuKat]

Thank you CP for responding. Today the needle was all over the place, so bad that I could not read the speed at all. It has gotten progressively worse.

I checked the connectors above the headlight as you suggested, but found no problems there. Both the male and female sides show no sign of corrosion or poor connection.

I have yet to test the output signal of the sender, I suppose that's the next step. I will let you know what I find.

[The CyberPoet]

I checked the connectors above the headlight as you suggested, but found no problems there. Both the male and female sides show no sign of corrosion or poor connection.

You checked both pairs of connectors, right -- did you also check the connector going into the back of the dash panel itself for the same issue? Usually problems in the wiring relate to damages previously caused by someone running over-wattage headlight bulbs that caused damages at the pins -- since the headlight circuit doesn't run through the dash, that's usually not an issue, but you could still have a problem there.

I have yet to test the output signal of the sender, I suppose that's the next step. I will let you know what I find.

How wonky is it?
If it regularly reads correct, then drops exactly 25, 50 or 75%, the problem is the castle nut on the front sprocket (it has four teeth or towers [raised metal protrusions] that swing past the pick-up). I've seen the nut not installed correctly being the basis, even when there were no damages to the nut itself (such as missing the spacer washer between the sprocket and the nut).

Cheers,
=-= The CyberPoet

______________________
CyberPoet's KR Specials
Suzuki Stratosphere - 6 Cylinders, the new Katana?
The Best Motorcycle Metal Billet Tire Valves in the World, plus lots of motorcycle & Katana (GSX600F / GSX750F) specific help files.

[albuKat]

lol, the Wonky factor is very high. It started as a small random glitch, and has progressed to the needle going from zero all the way up past my estimated actual speed 10 to 20mph. It does not stay steady at all now.

I checked two connectors, the one going into the instrument cluster, and the other which is right behind the third eye panel.

The castle nut is ok, that was the first thing I checked after reading this thread. It is tight, and the teeth are within range of the hall sensor.

The headlights I have installed are the silverstar headlights, I believe those are standard wattage. There was no previous owner, so no mystery there.

I will probably end up taking the fairings off this weekend when I have more time, to inspect the entire harness. I also need to buy a resistor for the test circuit per the service manual instructions.

[PHATSAX1]

I have the same problem on my 98 600 kat local shop said the digital read off a gixxer would fit and work on my bike. anyone else heard this before?

[The CyberPoet]

The same speedo sensor is used on a variety of Suzuki's, including the 98+ Kats, the TL1000S&R, the Bandit 600/1200, the GSXR models, SV1k, and the Busa. So, yes, I'd expect the same one to work.

Current part number: 34990-35F00

Cheers,
=-= The CyberPoet

______________________
CyberPoet's KR Specials
Suzuki Stratosphere - 6 Cylinders, the new Katana?
The Best Motorcycle Metal Billet Tire Valves in the World, plus lots of motorcycle & Katana (GSX600F / GSX750F) specific help files.

[kidblooper]

i would consider cost.. would replacing it be cheaper than welding ? i would tend to want to replace it. but i'm ofter more for a sure fire fix instead of somthing that might work.

[rice_rocket]

I don't understand the castle nut portion guys?

I took out my speedo sensor and it looked much like the one in the picture. The casing itself didn't look cracked, although I hope to take apart the faring's tomorrow to see about the wiring...

Sorry, new to all the functions and parts available!

[squiggy]

I don't understand the castle nut portion guys?

What specificaly don't you understand?

I'll try to described some of it but if it's not answering your question let us know.

The castle nut, part #21, is bolted to the front sprocket, under the sprocket cover. The castle nut is called so because it has high and low ridges like a castle wall.

[rice_rocket]

I understand now, I thought there was another nut on the outside to look for! Well... Seeing as my sensor is just gunked up, but the casing is not cracked or messed up.. I can only assume my sensor is bad or the wiring is faulty. I guess I'll start testing the wires with a multimeter, then maybe order a new sensor....

[squiggy]

There's the nut that hold the sprocket onto the transmission output shaft, then there's the castle nut that screws into the center of the same shaft.

[The CyberPoet]

The castle nut, part #21, is bolted to the front sprocket, under the sprocket cover. The castle nut is called so because it has high and low ridges like a castle wall.

Additionally:
You have another castle nut on the bike that's in a position to look at it very simply and easily -- the nut on the rear axle, which the safety pin clips through. Although that one is not connected to any form of hall sensor, it is still a castle nut.
The one on the front sprocket has four raised sections (at least if it's not damaged); breaking one of these will result in the speedo being 25% off, breaking two will result in the speeding being 50% off, etc.

Cheers
=-= The CyberPoet

[rice_rocket]

Aw crud.. okay so I did the test.. it looked like it was oscillating.. a little tough to tie down all those wires But.. I think the sensor was fine.

I also popped off the front fairing to get to the speedo cable and tested for continuity.. it was all good.

I wiped more junk off the sprocket cover and did notice a small crack.. but nothing as severe as the other guys. I could also see one of those metal speed disc teeth when I was sliding in the sensor.

So.. what do you think? Is it really a bad speedo still? Or is that speed disc inside the sprocket somehow messed up? ... or is that gauge cluster for some reason bad?

I didn't understand the checking fuses part.. seeing as everything worked. I did check the 5 fuses that were by the battery with no issues. Are there more fuses that I don't know about?